Facts, Not Fiction

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I have nothing but awe and great respect for the ability of Eluid Kipchoge. He is undoubtedly one of the greatest distance runners of all time. But this latest project, INEOS 1:59 Challenge, to pull out all the punches to produce a sub 2 hour marathon is a bit silly to me.

With 30 pacers and every other condition laid out to produce ideal conditions, it's no wonder that the IAAF won't recognize the result. Even if he breaks 2:00:0 in these unreal conditions I don't think it will be as good as his 2:01:39 at Berlin.

It ends up being sensationalism with no equivalent comparison to mean anything. Just my 2cents.

I find it fascinating...as long as it isn't downhill or a straight one way course and accurate ...being recognized by whomever isn't a big deal.

As I understand it, crews of 'rabbits' will cycle through the attempt. That's my only quibble. Despite my dismissive views on drafting, having a phalanx of runners right in front of you, all the way, will definitely make it easier.

It is obviously something that is very important to him. And I think it is good for the sport. After years of people knocking on the door of the 4-minute mile and just coming up short, once it was broken by Dr. Bannister, it did not seem so daunting. Others followed in short order.

The marathon is different in respect to how close to the supposed barrier others have come. Perhaps, if he is successful, we will see others times drop even faster.

I love it! And I believe shortly after he does it under these conditions, he or (probably) someone else will do it for "real." He will have shown that it IS possible...he's not on a scooter or wearing blades...so I think it will accelerate the advent of a 1:59:59 for "real."

There were a lot of potential sub-4 milers, some of whom had unnecessary barriers. And the 1500 mark was worth about 4:01. No one else is on par with 2:01:39. While maybe naive, I think that his 2:01 is better than his aided time trial. Running 21km/hr is just short of 6mps and we know what a 6mps wind does in the sprints. I would be that EK does a lot of 21km/hr tempo runs.

Until fairly recently I poo-pooed the possibility of a sub 2:00 marathon within my life time... or ever. I have to acknowledge that, impossible as it seems, a human can now run 26 miles at a pace I could no longer maintain for 26 yards.,

Everybody knows that it will not be acceptable as a WR; that is not the point. The point is to demonstrate that he can run, on a course that would be acceptable if other conditions were met, under two hours. He needs to run one second/mile faster than at Monza. Since that effort, he has twice run faster than the official WR at that time (2:02:57). OTOH, he is two years older. Best of luck to him!
Cheers,
Alan Shank
Woodland, CA, USA